The invention relates to a powered surgical apparatus, a method of manufacturing the powered surgical apparatus, and a method of using the powered surgical apparatus. In particular, the invention relates to such a powered surgical apparatus usable to shave, cut and/or remove tissue, bone and/or any other bodily material.
Surgical apparatus are powered to enhance shaving, cutting and/or removal of tissue, bone and/or other bodily material. Such powered surgical apparatus can include a shaving or cutting instrument, such as a rotating blade, for example. The rotating blade can be connected to a handpiece which is held by an operator of the apparatus, such as a surgeon, for example. The surgeon, by holding the handpiece in the surgeon's hand, can thereby manipulate the rotating blade to shave or cut desired tissue, bone and/or other bodily material.
One example of such a surgical apparatus is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,492,527 (hereinafter “the 527 patent”), the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. The 527 patent is specifically directed to a surgical shaver, for use in endoscopic surgical procedures, that drives an elongated rotatable surgical instrument and aspirates material from a surgical work site. As shown in FIGS. 1-5 and 14 of the 527 patent, the surgical shaver includes a handpiece 10 with a body 12 having a distal end 14, a proximal end 16, a collet assembly 18, a motor seal assembly 20 and a cable assembly 22. A shaver blade assembly 172, which is attached to the body 12 of the handpiece 10 by the collet assembly 18, includes an elongated rotatable inner blade 174 and an elongated outer blade 176. The elongated outer blade 176 defines a cutting window 188 facing a direction that is traverse to the axis of the shaver. The collet assembly 18 is manually rotatable to enable rotation of the cutting window 188.
In operation, a surgeon grasps the elongated body 12 of the handpiece 10 in a manner similar to gripping a writing apparatus, such as a pencil or pen. While gripping the body 12 of the handpiece 10 in this manner, the surgeon is able to direct the distal end of the shaver blade assembly to the bodily material to be cut. With the tips of the surgeon's fingers, the surgeon can also rotate the collet assembly 18 to rotate the cutting window 188 to an appropriate position to cut the bodily material.